Saturday, September 15, 2012 from 12:30 PM to 5:00 PM (EDT)

Ticket Information

VIP Early Entry Tickets will get you into the Vendy Awards an hour early--during this hour (11:30am entry) you can eat to your heart (and stomach's) delight without the lines. The number of tickets at this level is limited to ensure the ultimate street eating experience.
And if beginning your all-you-can-eat food experience an hour before the crowds arrive isn't enough, you will have exclusive access to the the following:
•Foodie “Meet-and-Eat:” Eat, drink, and hang out with some of this year’s celebrity judges and well-known foodies, including judge and Food & Wine Magazine Restaurant Editor Kate Krader, Zach Brooks of Midtown Lunch, and Ed Levine from Serious Eats.
•Street Food Mini-Tours: Turnstile Tours will be offering a mini-version of their regular food cart tours, featuring an up-close and personal experience with two of this year's nominees. VIPs will meet the owners, hear their stories, and learn some tidbits on the history of street food in NYC. All, of course, while sampling the delicious cuisine.
•Cooking Demos: BlondieandBrownie.com and MidtownLunch.com bloggers, Siobhan Wallace and Alexandra Penfold, will demo a refreshing slushie cocktail recipe from 2010 Dessert Vendy winner Kelvin Slush for their upcoming book New York a la Cart: Recipes and Stories from the Big Apple's Best Food Trucks (Running Press, Spring 2013).
Good for admission to the Vendy Awards. Copious amounts of food and wine. Each ticket is a tax deductible donation. Early Entry ticket buyers are entered into a lottery to become our "Citizen Judge," eat at Judges Table, and help choose our 2012 Vendy Cup winner. Limited Time Only, While Supplies Last

Good for admission to the Vendy awards for kids 8 to 12 years old. Each ticket includes all the food your child can eat. Each ticket is a tax deductible donation. Tickets will be available until September 24, or until we sell out.

Can't attend the Vendys but still want to support the Street Vendor Project of the Urban Justice Center, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that provides a voice for the ten thousand people who sell food and merchandise on the streets and sidewalks of our city? Your gracious donation is tax-deductible in full.

ONLY FOR INDIVIDUALS WHO HAVE ALREADY PURCHASED GENERAL ADMISSION OR EARLY BIRD TICKETS-PLEASE BRING BOTH THE ORIGINAL TICKET YOU PURCHASED AND THE EMAIL YOU RECEIVE WITH THIS PURCHASE
Premier Early Entry Tickets will get you into the Vendy Awards an hour early (11:30am entry) --during this hour you can eat to your heart (and stomach's) delight without the lines. The number of tickets at this level is limited to ensure the ultimate street eating experience. Each ticket is a tax deductible donation.
Begin your all-you-can-eat food experience an hour before the crowds arrive PLUS take part in the following:
•Foodie “Meet-and-Eat:” Eat, drink, and hang out with some of this year’s celebrity judges and well-known foodies, including judge and Food & Wine Magazine Restaurant Editor Kate Krader, Zach Brooks of Midtown Lunch, and Ed Levine from Serious Eats.
•Street Food Mini-Tours: Turnstile Tours will be offering a mini-version of their regular food cart tours, featuring an up-close and personal experience with two of this year's nominees. VIPs will meet the owners, hear their stories, and learn some tidbits on the history of street food in NYC. All, of course, while sampling the delicious cuisine.
•Cooking Demos: BlondieandBrownie.com and MidtownLunch.com bloggers, Siobhan Wallace and Alexandra Penfold, will demo a refreshing slushie cocktail recipe from 2010 Dessert Vendy winner Kelvin Slush for their upcoming book New York a la Cart: Recipes and Stories from the Big Apple's Best Food Trucks (Running Press, Spring 2013).

ONLY FOR INDIVIDUALS WHO HAVE ALREADY PURCHASED GENERAL ADMISSION OR EARLY BIRD KIDS TICKETS-PLEASE BRING BOTH THE ORIGINAL TICKET YOU PURCHASED AND THE EMAIL YOU RECIEVE WITH THIS PURCHASE
Early Entry VIP Tickets will get you into the Vendy Awards an hour early--during this hour you can eat to your heart (and stomach's) delight without the lines. The number of tickets at this level is limited to ensure the ultimate street eating experience. Each ticket is a tax deductible donation.
Begin your all-you-can-eat food experience an hour before the crowds arrive PLUS take part in the following:
•Foodie “Meet-and-Eat:” Eat, drink, and hang out with some of this year’s celebrity judges and well-known foodies, including judge and Food & Wine Magazine Restaurant Editor Kate Krader, Zach Brooks of Midtown Lunch, and Ed Levine from Serious Eats.
•Street Food Mini-Tours: Turnstile Tours will be offering a mini-version of their regular food cart tours, featuring an up-close and personal experience with two of this year's nominees. VIPs will meet the owners, hear their stories, and learn some tidbits on the history of street food in NYC. All, of course, while sampling the delicious cuisine.
•Cooking Demos: BlondieandBrownie.com and MidtownLunch.com bloggers, Siobhan Wallace and Alexandra Penfold, will demo a refreshing slushie cocktail recipe from 2010 Dessert Vendy winner Kelvin Slush for their upcoming book New York a la Cart: Recipes and Stories from the Big Apple's Best Food Trucks (Running Press, Spring 2013).

Event Details

The Eighth Annual Vendy Awards are almost here. On September 15th, on Governors Island, we’ll determine the best street food vendor in NYC is while raising money for The Street Vendor Project .

The Vendys are:

NYC’s premier street food showcase and an intense cook-off between the best sidewalk chefs that has become one of the city’s most beloved and widely anticipated food events!

A festival of respect and gratitude for all vendors and everything they provide us–from your morning coffee (half-and-half, two sugars) to the $2 umbrella when you get caught in the thunderstorm.

A fundraiser for the Street Vendor Project, a membership-based non-profit organization that stands up for vendors’ rights.

WE EXPECT TO SELL OUT.

BUY YOUR TICKET IN ADVANCE!

Each ticket is also a tax-deductible donation.

How are the finalists chosen?

Simple enough. Until July 25th, we’ll take public nominations to determine which lucky vendors will compete against each other for street food glory. People like you can suggest your favorite street food vendors though an online nomination process. Let us know who is Vendy-worthy - nominate your favorite vendor here!

Where and when?

When: Saturday (12:30-5 pm), September 15, 2012

Where: Governors Island, located in the heart of New York Harbor

What happens at the Awards?

Finalists arrive with their carts/trucks and prepare their best eats for Vendy attendees and judges. Beer, wine, and non-alcoholic beverages will be plentiful, with tables and chairs for the food-weary. There will be live music, performances, and a raffle, culminating in a short ceremony naming the award winners!

Please wear comfortable shoes. Each year we work to shorten the lines, but standing in line is part of the Vendy – and street food – experience. We can’t say if any marriages have come out of people waiting in line together, but we do know that many friendships have been born as people wait for their chance to sample the finalists’ food.

Which awards will be given out this year?

One finalist will be awarded the Vendy Cup and title of Vendy Award winner. Additional awards will be given to the People’s Taste Award winner, the Dessert Category winner, Rookie Vendor of the Year, and this year, for the very first time: The Market Vendor Award.

What is the new Market Vendor category?

Eligibility for the Vendy Awards has historically been restricted to full-time mobile food vendors working on the city streets and sidewalks; however, the recent growth and popularity of organized street fairs and outdoor markets has given birth to a new breed of mobile vendor and they deserve their own special category. Vendors from local hotspots like Smorgasburg, the Hester Street Fair, and the New Amsterdam Market have been pushing the envelope of traditional street-food often utilizing locally sourced ingredients and classic techniques to create new and exciting dishes. The Market Vendor category reflects a growing dynamic within the street food community that was made clear to us by the strong support of the voting public through the nomination process. We are thrilled to include these great vendors and welcome them to the Vendy family!

Can I help choose the Vendy winner?

Attendees choose our People’s Taste Award winner. Audience members will also choose winners in the Dessert, Rookie Vendor and Market Vendor of the Year categories.

What does my ticket get me?

All the food you can eat, and an open bar of wine, beer and non-alcoholic beverages. A portion of your entry ticket is a tax-deductible contribution to the Street Vendor Project, whose goal is to make sure that vendors are always a part of our city.

Can I buy my ticket later or at the door?

Last year we sold out before the event and there were no tickets available at the door. The event has grown every year and, in order to keep the lines manageable, we sell a limited amount of tickets ensuring a great experience for everyone involved. We strongly recommend buying your tickets early. We won’t run out of food, but we will run out of tickets.

Are kids welcome? Do they need tickets?

We love kids and kids love street food. Children 8 and under don’t need a ticket. Otherwise, they do.

How do I get to Governors Island?

Governors Island is easily accessible by ferry. Bicycles are allowed on the ferry and bike parking will be available on site; rental bikes are also available. Please note that cars and pets are not allowed on Governors Island.

The Vendy Awards location is a 5-minute walk from the ferry.

I’m a member of the press. How do I get a press pass or arrange to interview the organizers or individual vendors?

Please do not call or email the office. To arrange interviews, email Emma Woods at Emma@berlinrosen.com. To request a press pass,send an email to Emma by September 5th, including your contact info and name of your publication. Press passes are limited and we will let inform recipients by September 10th.

My company would like to sponsor the Vendy Awards. What should I do?

Now in its eighth year, the Vendy Awards has established itself as a classic NYC event that brings out hundreds of food-savvy guests and attracts local, national, and international media attention. We are actively looking for corporate sponsors, big and small, to partner with us to make this event a success. Please contact us at vendyawards@gmail.com or (917) 716-8253.

Can I volunteer at the Vendys, or help organize this year’s Vendys?

We are always looking for dedicated volunteers to help plan and work the event. Please email vendyvolunteers@gmail.com if you are interested. Many 2011 volunteers have already signed up and spaces are limited so get on board early and start getting involved.

How can I help support the Street Vendor Project?

We receive NO government grants and depend on people like you to support our work. We always appreciate financial help, even if you can’t come to the Awards. You can make a tax-deductible contribution to the Street Vendor Project at the Street Vendor site.

Why do vendors need an organization?

There are more than 10,000 street vendors in New York City — hot dog vendors, book vendors, street artists, and many others. They’re small businesspeople struggling to make ends meet by working long hours in often harsh conditions. Most street vendors are immigrants and people of color and often face discrimination though unjust legislation supported by established business interests. In recent years, vendors have become victims of New York’s aggressive “quality of life” crackdown. Denied access to vending licenses, they receive $1,000 tickets for minor violations like vending too close to a crosswalk — more than any big business is required to pay for similar violations.

The Street Vendor Project is a membership-based project with more than 1300 active vendor members who are working together to create a vendors’ movement for permanent change. We reach out to vendors in the streets and storage garages and teach them about their legal rights and responsibilities. We hold meetings where we plan collective actions for getting our voices heard. We publish reports and file lawsuits to raise public awareness about vendors and the enormous contribution they make to our city. Finally, we help vendors grow their businesses by linking them with small business training and loans.

The Street Vendor Project is part of the Urban Justice Center, a local non-profit organization that provides legal representation and advocacy to various marginalized groups. The Street Vendor Project is funded through member dues, a few private foundations, and generous individuals like you. Join our list of supporters.

Saturday, September 15, 2012 from 12:30 PM to 5:00 PM (EDT)

Organizer

There are more than 10,000 street vendors in New York City -- hot dog vendors, flower vendors, book vendors, shoe shiners, street artists, and many others. They are small businesspeople struggling to make ends meet. Most are recent immigrants and people of color. They work long hours under harsh conditions, asking for nothing more than a chance to sell their goods and services on the public sidewalk.

Yet, in recent years, vendors have been victims of New York’s aggressive “quality of life” crackdown. They have been denied access to vending licenses. They have been swept from the streets by powerful business groups. They have been unjustly harassed, and their property has been illegally seized.

The Street Vendor Project works to correct the social and economic injustice faced by these hardworking entrepreneurs. Reaching out to vendors on the street, we hold clinics to educate vendors about their legal rights. Working to support a local vendors’ rights movement, we organize vendors to participate in the political process that determines their fate. Finally, we engage in systemic advocacy to help policy makers and the public understand the important role street vendors play in the life of our city.

The Urban Justice Center serves low-income and marginalized New Yorkers through a unique combination of direct legal services, systemic advocacy, community education, and political organizing. The Street Vendor Project, one of the UJC's programs, maintains this website to provide additional resources and information specifically about and for our vending community.